Better East Texas: The problem with sanctuary cities

The term sanctuary city has risen to prominence in the past year, as numerous city and even a few state governments have declared that they will protect illegal immigrants from possible federal prosecution.

The message is that these entities will essentially ignore federal law and follow local or statewide ordinances that have been created to conflict with the federal rules. A lot of emotion on both sides.

One of the cities that has declared itself a sanctuary city is Chicago, Illinois, a very violent city. Well, just down the road form Chicago, you have a group of counties that have used the sanctuary terminology to declare themselves sanctuaries for gun owners who feel that state regulations and laws have started to erode gun rights.

One democratic lawmaker said, “I don’t think you can say, ‘I don’t agree with the law, so I won’t enforce it.'” This would be almost comical if the subject matter was not so serious. But gun proponents in the area have turned the table on the poster child for sanctuary cities and they aren’t happy about it.

The sanctuary movement on all sides needs to end lest we become a nation of exceptions to laws. We are a nation of laws that must be enforced, and yes, there is solution to the illegal immigration problem that respects families, but our laws just can’t be cherry-picked by governments – essentially government leaders – and there be no consequence. We must resist splintering our rules for the sake of special interests, it is not healthy and erodes our democracy.